AB InBev-Modelo Deal May Be Derailed by Slow-Track Judge

Anheuser-Busch InBev NV’s bid to buy Grupo Modelo SAB may face an obstacle unforeseen by the parties when the Justice Department sued to block the deal -- assignment of the case to Washington’s slowest federal judge.

U.S. District Judge Richard Roberts, who was randomly picked to handle antitrust litigation over the $20.1 billion deal, carries the largest backlog of unfinished cases and unresolved motions among his Washington colleagues, according to federal court data.